Abide With Me: A Bruce Banner Fanfiction
by SJ Sykes
Summary: After a chance meeting with a young firecracker of a woman, Bruce Banner finds himself battling not only the monster in his head, but possible affections he'd spent the last few years trying to avoid out of fear. She's profane, volatile, sarcastic... And possible the most dazzling woman he's ever seen. Is it possible that he can learn to ignore the beast inside him as she does?
1. Chapter 1: Lennon

"Hey! Hey man, wake up, don't die on me!" Dr. Bruce Banner heard through his barely conscious haze. The voice seemed so far away in the distance, and he held onto it like a life line as he started coming back toward the surface. He felt a rock it him in the stomach and he groaned, sitting up slowly. His entire body ached. The doctor rubbed at his eyes, trying to clear his vision. "It's alive!" He heard the same voice say, clearer now. Bruce looked up toward the voice, and immediately turned red, trying to cover himself. Above him was a young woman, no older than twenty five, with long white hair except for the right side which was shaved. She had big green eyes surrounded in heavy black eye makeup. Her nose was as cute as a button. She had a rather pretty face, despite the fact that she looked incredibly malnourished and paler than death. She was dressed in all black, wearing skinny jeans and a smooth leather biker jacket. Draped over her shoulder was a JanSport backpack. The woman was sitting cross legged on a pile of bricks, smiling down at the doctor. "Hey there, stud muffin. Welcome back." She said cheerfully.

The doctor blinked, then looked around at the damage. "Dear God." He muttered, holding his head in his hands. "Did I hurt anybody?" He asked the young woman desperately.

She shook her head. "No, but you did scare the shit out of me and some pigeons. You came flying out of the sky, huge, naked, green and roaring like a lion giving birth, but no one got hurt." She replied. "Are you alright?"

Dr. Banner nodded, looking around at the damage again. "Christ..." He whispered.

The woman took off her backpack and pulled out a small bundle, then threw it to the naked Banner. He looked up at her in confusion, and she grinned. "I thought you'd need these. I didn't think they'd fit until you... Shrunk? Yes, I suppose that's the word I'm looking for... But they actually might."

As she spoke, the doctor unrolled the bundle of cloths and pulled on the brown pants and black button down shirt. "Thank you." He called up to the woman.

She waved him off. "No problem. I threw a bottle of water down there too. You look like you need it. What's your name?"

"Uh, Bruce. Bruce Banner."

The woman's emerald green eyes lit up and she smiled down at him in a welcoming, cheerful way. She held out her hand to pull the doctor out of the ruble. "Nice to meet you, Bruce Banner."

He took the woman's hand-which was tiny, yet strong and callused-and allowed himself to be pulled out. "Nice to meet you too, Miss..." Bruce's voice trailed off as he realized he didn't know the woman's names.

She smiled. "Lennon Burke. Just call me Lennon, no need for a 'Miss'. I'm not that special." She replied jokingly.

Bruce found himself staring at the young woman. He was rather taken aback with her. Although she looked like she lived in a gutter and tripped the blind to pass the time, she didn't act like one. Not even a little bit. Her eyes were soft, sparkling with life and Bruce couldn't help but get lost in them. He was swimming in them. He was absolutely enchanted by the woman. She had seen the Other Guy and watched the doctor change, she saw him crash through a roof and survive... So what does she do? She goes out and gets him cloths and a bottle of water, then sits by him and waits for him to wake up.

Lennon raised an eyebrow. "Are you planning on letting go of my hand, Mr. Banner?" She teased, the corner of her mouth twitching up into a playful smirk.

Bruce flushed a bright shade of pink and looked down. "It's Dr. Banner, actually." He replied awkwardly.

"You're a doctor?"

The doctor nodded. "Scientist."

Lennon looked impressed. "So! The big question is, why the hell were you in the sky? More importantly, how did you survive a fall like that, it should have killed you, man."

Bruce looked up toward the sky, searching for the jet. "Well," He started to say as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I was heading for New York, but then..." He looked down at Lennon, who was staring at him with her huge green eyes as if he were some sort of God. He cleared his throat. "Sorry, it's a long story."

The young woman looked around. "Well, considering the way you fell out of the sky and the size of the jet you fell out of, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you got attacked." She replied. Her eyes suddenly locked on Bruce, and he stepped back, a little startled. "Are you an alien?" She asked.

Bruce laughed quietly, although it was slightly bittersweet. "No, no I'm not an alien."

"Are you friends with Tony Stark?" Although her tone was serious, her eyes were still sparkling. "Sorry, it was the only thing that made sense in my mind."

He thought back to the incident on the jet and sighed heavily. "I uh… I don't really know anymore. I hope so."

Lennon realized she hit a sensitive spot, and she looked down. "Well, Bruce... Dr. Banner, do you need a ride somewhere?" She asked politely.

The doctor looked down at the woman and smiled. "Do you think you can get me to Manhattan?"

She nodded. "Of course, I can. Just let me get something from my house." She replied. "It'll only take a few minutes."

"Of course. Take your time. I really don't want to be there super quick anyway..." He agreed.

The woman glanced up at him, a bit baffled by his words, but just grabbed her backpack from the ground and looked toward the entrance. "Shall we?"

Bruce followed her out, hands in his pockets.

When the two came up on the young woman's house-which what only a few minutes' walk away- Lennon looked up at the doctor apologetically. "Please excuse the mess, no one ever comes over. The only one normally here is my dad." She replied sourly.

Bruce shrugged. "It means nothing to me. You should have seen the mess I made up on the jet."

The woman laughed. "Help yourself to a drink, I'll only be a moment." She said as she disappeared into her room.

Bruce didn't want a drink, so instead he walked around and looked at pictures on the walls. In the photos, there was an older man, each time with a different woman. There were no pictures of Lennon at all. On the floor were more empty bottles of alcohol that Bruce had ever seen in his life. Judging by the type of photos that were on the walls, Bruce guessed that they belonged to Lennon's father.

As he walked by, he accidentally looked through the door that was opened just a crack. He saw Lennon in her room, changing her cloths. She was completely shirtless. The doctor looked away almost immediately, blushing profusely, but not before noticing a very large ink colored patch on the young woman's torso. Or at least, he though he saw it. He tried to blow it off as his imagination.

He made his way back down the hallway, looking up at the pictures again. He still felt guilty knowing he'd peaked in on the changing woman.

Moments later, Lennon's door opened, and she came back out, this time wearing leather skinny jeans, Dr. Martens, and a three quarter sleeved Black Sabbath t-shirt, the same one Tony had been wearing earlier. Her backpack was slung over one shoulder, her jacket over the other. She smiled up at the doctor. "Hey there."

Bruce smiled. "Hey." His voice sounded rough, as he was still embarrassed by seeing the woman half naked.

Lennon raised an eyebrow. "Are you alright? You look like you've seen a ghost." She observed.

Bruce nodded. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Are you ready to go?"

"I am indeed. Let's get out of here before my father gets home." She replied, her voice humorous. "The old man wouldn't like the idea of me bringing a stranger here, especially a man." Her voice was teasing as she sent him a playful smirk.

Bruce felt the heat rush to his cheeks again, but he held his tongue.

Lennon led him out of the house toward the garage, where he sat dumbfounded. There was no car in sight. "Um... What are we taking, exactly?" He asked cautiously.

Lennon turned to him, her lips curled up into a smirk as she pulled a tarp off of a large Harley Davidson motorcycle. Bruce Banner felt his pulse quicken, and the Other Guy stirred in the back of his head. She pulled two helmets off of the shelf and handed one to Bruce. "It's perfectly safe, Dr. Banner, I swear. I won't you get hurt." She explained, smiling at the skittish doctor.

Bruce swallowed down his fears and took the helmet from her, pulling it over his head. He carefully slipped his leg over the gorgeous bike behind Lennon, and wrapped his arms around her torso. "A-are you sure this is safe?" He stammered.

Lennon chuckled. "That depends."

"On?"

She turned and smiled at him. "Whether or not you trust me."

The doctor gulped, and nodded carefully. Lennon turned and flipped the visor on her helmet down and started up the bike, tearing off into the distance.


	2. Chapter 2: Saving Manhattan

As they rode, Bruce was clinging to the woman. He was terrified, considering they were going so fast down the expressway that the cars on either side of him were nothing but blurs, but at least the Other Guy was staying away. He tried not to do anything life threatening out of the fear that he would be pushed too hard.

"You doing alright, Dr. Banner?" Lennon shouted, her voice muffled by the helmet.

"I'm surviving." He replied through clenched teeth.

Traffic began to slow, and Bruce started to relax. He loosened his hold on the woman and flipped the visor up. Lennon was sitting quietly on the front of the bike, watching other cars like a hawk. He began thinking about what he would do once he got to the other Avengers. Would they be angry with him for what happened? Scared of him? They had been so cautious with him before, Tony Stark being the glaring exception of course, but they almost treated him like a child to keep the beast at bay, and although it hadn't been his fault, he did almost kill Natasha Romanoff. And the pilot. And a few other agents. And Thor. _God, I've caused a mess._

He also started thinking about Lennon. He wasn't used to this much human compassion. Most people he met with either needed his help or wanted to kill him. She was such a good person to him. She had been so nice to him so far, and he had no idea why.

"Hey, is your dad going to be upset if you're not home?" The doctor asked, thinking back and remembering the way she had rushed him out of the house.

Lennon scoffed. "Probably. But, he can't say anything about it. I'm twenty six for fuck's sake. The only reason we live together is because he got evicted and needed a place to stay." She explained. "I'm too nice to him, honestly."

"What about your mother?" Dr. Banner asked. The moment the words were out of his mouth, he regretted them. He felt the woman tense up her entire body, and suck in a sharp breath. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you, I..."

"No it's okay." Lennon responded, her voice completely back to normal, as if he had never asked that question. "I don't know where my mom is. She ran off with some Australian billionaire and is probably sunbathing on a yacht in the middle of the Caribbean right now. She left my father and me when I was little. I don't remember much about her."

"And I'm guessing your relationship with your father is..." Bruce felt her relax her body and he felt the urge to tighten his grip on her. He had hit a sensitive spot and he felt guilty. "Strained?"

Lennon scoffed. "If you want to be polite about it. I hate the son of a bitch." She said flatly.

The way she spoke reminded him of how Natasha always acted. Heartless, like she didn't care about anything or anyone, although Bruce could tell that it hurt her. She would never admit to him that it hurt, because that was just the kind of person Lennon was.

As the pair came up toward New York, the doctor could see the destruction taking place already. The Other Guy roared in his head and he fought to keep him under control. He couldn't here. Not yet. Not with Lennon around. "Dear God."

"What the fuck." Lennon whispered at the same time. They got off of the bike and looked around. "What do we do, Bruce?" She asked him, unsure if she could trust what she was actually seeing.

Bruce looked away, looking around at the ruined buildings. He needed to find the others. The world needed all of them fighting together. It was the only chance they would have of survival. The doctor didn't want to fight, he didn't want the Other Guy to take control of his mind, but there was no choice here. The Hulk was already pounding in his head. "Lennon, you need to leave. I need to find the others." He told her, his voice urgent.

When there was no response, he turned around, only to find her kneeling on the ground a few feet away, crouched over the mangled body of a man. Her movements were jerky, and he could hear quiet hitches in her breath. Lennon was crying. With hesitant steps, he made his way to her and knelt down beside her. The sight was horrific. The man was almost completely ripped open, a huge piece of metal plunged straight through his chest. His eyes were open wide, as if he had seen the metal plate before it buried itself in his heart. Bruce looked up as a quiet sob escaped the young woman. There were tears pouring down her face, and her hand was covering her mouth, trying to quiet the crying. "Sam..." She whispered in an anguished tone, her shaking hand hovering over the man's chest.

"Lennon..." Bruce muttered, taking hold of her. He didn't want her to see this. Bruce couldn't help but notice a green tint to his skin as he stole one more glance at the mangled body on the ground. "Lennon, I'm sorry." He whispered, pulling her up and holding her to his chest. Her entire frame was shaking.

Then, as quickly as it came, she stopped crying, let out a trembling breath, and pulled away from the doctor. Her dark make up hadn't been smeared, but her face was red. _Her eyes are beautiful._ The doctor thought as he examined the young woman who seemed to be calm now. She smiled at the doctor as if nothing had happened, although it was pained.

Bruce looked at her anxiously. "Are you alright, Lennon?" He asked quietly.

Lennon nodded, pushing her long white hair from her face. "Yeah. I'm fine. Sorry you had to see that." She muttered.

"You're apologizing for crying?" He asked in confusion.

She shrugged, and looked. "Come on." She said, picking her helmet off of the ground. "Let's go find your friends."

Before Bruce could protest her coming along, she started up the motorcycle, and he was forced to get on. He had a job to do.

Once he had found everyone, he hopped off the bike as everyone stared at him and Lennon in confusion. He strolled up to them slowly, looking around at the damage. "So." He said, gesturing at the mess with his arms. "This all seems horrible."

"I've seen worse." Natasha stated blatantly.

He gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry."

The assassin shook her head. "No, we could use a little worse."

"Stark?" Steve said. "We got him."

_"Banner?"_ He heard over the little intercom.

The captain nodded. "Just like you said." He looked over at the other person on the bike, and his eyes got wide as she took off her helmet, revealing herself as a woman. "And he looks like he brought a friend." He said, unsure.

_"Great. Tell them to suit up."_

The young white haired woman walked up beside Dr. Banner, her helmet under her arm. She was staring at Steve like she was standing in front of a celebrity. She nodded in respect, her emerald eyes sparkling. "Captain." She said.

Steve dipped his head. "Ma'am."

Bruce smiled uncomfortably. "Everyone, this is Lennon Burke. She's the reason I got here so fast. Lennon, this is Natasha Romanoff, otherwise known as Black Widow, Clint Barton, otherwise known as Hawkeye, you already know Captain Steve Rogers, and this is Thor. He's a god." He said, gesturing to the huge God of thunder.

Lennon waved. "Greetings. I'm the plus one."

_ "Captain."_Tony said over the intercom to Steve. _"Who's this friend of Banner's that sounds so feminine?"_

"Her name's Lennon. She brought him here." He replied.

_ "She from S.H.E.I.L.D.?"_

Lennon raised an eyebrow and looked up at Bruce. He shook his head. "No." Then he looked to the woman. "Lennon, you need to leave." He said urgently.

The young woman looked up at him in shock, annoyance flashing in her emerald eyes. "Like hell I do! I can help."

"How?' Natasha asked her.

Lennon pointed back at the beautiful Harley. "I have transportation, and I managed to pick up an officer's gun. I can help you."

Bruce shook his head. "Lennon, no, you're not getting involved, you're get killed." He told her. "Please go."

The woman looked at him in dismay. "Are you out of your fucking mind? Look at those fucking things! Look at the huge thing in the fucking sky!" She shot back.

He gripped the young woman's shoulders and locked eyes with her. "Lennon, listen to me, you need to get out of here."

"And where is she going to go, Banner?" Natasha questioned. Bruce's eyes flashed to her, turning green momentarily. Natasha stood her ground. "She's got a way of getting around. We need as much help as we can get. She can start evacuating people."

"Are you trying to get her _killed?"_ He shouted. They stepped forward as they noticed his skin turning green.

"The Black Widow is right." Thor stepped in.

Bruce glared at the God and turned back to Lennon. "You're not staying here. You're going to find safety."

"Not a change, Bruce! I already saved your ass once today, I'm not having you die on me."

_"We're not discussing this!"_Bruce snarled, his knuckles turning green as his grip around the young woman's arms tightened.

Lennon looked up at him in fear. "Bruce, you're hurting me." She hissed.

The Other Guy seemed to back off immediately. Bruce released her, his mind racing with confusion. That had never happened before. He never had control over the Other Guy before. He just came whenever Bruce got angry. He stared down at the woman, examining her like he would cells under a microscope. Her gaze of horror had softened, and she looked up to him before grabbing the sides of his face and bringing him down to her height before pressing her lips to his forehead. Bruce's heart skipped a beat as he looked back to her. She gave him the most heartfelt smile. "I'll be okay, Bruce. I promise. Go save the world." She murmured.

"Uh, hey, lovebirds, we have a job to do." Clint's voice came from nearby.

_"Wait, it that Banner's girlfriend?"_Tony's voice came through.

"Guys? We have more coming this way!" Natasha shouted, as if she couldn't believe what was happening.

Lennon pulled away and picked up her helmet. "Let's go. I'm going to evacuate as many buildings as possible in a four block radius and get everyone to safer ground."

_"Oh I like her. Banner needs to keep her."_Tony said. _"I'm bringing the party to you guys."_As he said that, the monstrous metal creature ripped its way through a building, straight for the Avengers.

"I don't see how that's a party." Natasha commented sarcastically.

Bruce Banner turned and looked toward the metal creature, then over to Lennon, who was watching him carefully, as if wondering what he were about to do. Just as the doctor turned and started walking toward the massive beast, he heard the Captain coming toward him.

"Dr. Banner. Now might be a very good time for you to get angry." He said.

Bruce looked over his shoulder with an amused look on his face. "That's my secret, Cap." he said. "I'm always angry." As he turned, the Other Guy completely took over, and he slammed his fist into the beast, nearly destroying it.

"Hold on!" Tony yelled as a ball of fire shot out of his suit and attaching itself to the creature. Everyone took cover, and the Hulk shielded Lennon, whose eyes were sparkling with anticipation and fear. She took in the beast before her, her jaw dropping.

Once the fire had cleared, the Avengers stood back to back in a circle, looking around at the enemies around them. Lennon turned and jumped on the Harley, pushing the Other Guy out of her mind. She would deal with it later. Right now, she had to act. "Bruce!" She called as she put on her helmet.

The giant green beast turned to her, his face still turned down into a snarl.

The young woman smiled at him. "Don't get dead."

The Hulk gave her a growling laugh, then she flipped the visor down and tore off through the streets of New York.  
_

Hey guys, this is the second chapter, I hope you like it. I enjoy criticism, so if anyone has anything they want me to change or improve, I will. All of this is already written, it's up on Quotev, and this is the edited version, so I hope you like it.  
Thank you guys!  
Stevie


	3. Chapter 3: The Aftermath

That night, after everyone had been cleaned up, ate lunch and got Loki back to Asgard, they all met back at Stark Tower. He didn't show it, but Bruce was a bit of a wreck. He hadn't seen Lennon after the attacks, and he couldn't help but assume the worst. His hands were shaking as he sat in the lab, trying to bandage up Tony.

"Hey, you okay big guy?" Tony asked, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Bruce looked up at him gravely, then just continued with his work.

Tony sighed. "Banner, she's alive, I promise."

"Easy for you to say." He replied, his voice scratchy.

Tony looked straight into the man's eyes, then let out a huge breath. "I think she likes you." Tony grinned as Bruce's face flushed bright red. "A woman in love will never stray far away from her Romeo." He was trying to make the doctor blush, since he knew it would work.

The doctor gave him a strange look. "I don't think Romeo and Juliet is such a good comparison. They both kind of died."

"Not the point."

Bruce sighed as he finished wrapping Tony up, then sat down in the chair across from him. "I think... I think the Other Guy likes her." He said.

"Looks like you have some competition then, Bruce."

"No, not like that." He replied, chuckling at what the man had said. He took off his glasses and put them on the table. "Earlier, when everyone was insisting that she stay with us and fight, I nearly lost control while holding onto her, and she said 'Bruce, you're hurting me'... And he stopped." The doctor looked up Tony, who had scrunched his eyebrows and was now paying attention. "He just stopped. He didn't want to hurt her. I don't know how or why, but he... I... stopped." His voice trailed off. "Is that even possible?"

Tony rubbed the back of his neck. "Well... It's not _not_ possible. Maybe your big green monster found his sweet spot." He said.

The doctor sighed. "That'd be nice…"

Downstairs, the remaining four Avengers were keeping themselves occupied and winding down from the day that had. Natasha was reading a book, Steve was falling asleep on the couch like the senior citizen he was, and Clint was trying to explain the rules of football to a very confused god of thunder

"Does that make sense?" Clint was saying.

Thor looked back to the TV. "I suppose. But why is this sport called football if they use their hands?"

Clint sighed in defeat as the doorbell for the penthouse part of the tower rang.

All four Avengers looked at the door cautiously. Steve, who had been asleep, was now on alert. He glanced over at Natasha who had her hand on the gun in her holster. They exchanged a look and he nodded. "Go check it out."

The assassin nodded once, got to her feet and opened the door, only to find a soaking wet woman with long white hair hanging in her face standing there. Her face was full of cuts and there was a fading purple bruise over her cheekbone. There was an inch long gash on her collarbone. Her bottom lip was cut badly. She looked exhausted. "Hey there, Miss. Romanoff." She said, trying to catch her breath.

"Miss. Burke." Steve breathed, standing up. "Are you alright, ma'am?" He asked her.

"I'll be fine as soon as I get out of these damn cloths. Mind if I come in?"

Clint nodded.

"Thanks." She said, stepping into the house and pushing her sopping her hair out of her face.

"You look hurt, Lady Burke." Thor noticed, gesturing to the cuts on her face.

Lennon waved him off. "Nah, I'm fine, thanks for the concern though, God. Is Bruce here?"

Natasha nodded. "Yes, he's in the lab with Tony Stark. The elevator is over there. I think the doctor's been waiting for you." She said emotionlessly, although her eyes were concerned. The poor girl looked horrible.

Lennon wrinkled her nose. "Are there stairs? I don't do elevators. Claustrophobic." She asked, almost apologetically.

Steve pointed down a hallways past the woman. "Yeah, they're over there."

"I'll bring a change of clothes for you up to the lab. You must be freezing." Natasha told her.

The young alternative woman smiled. "Thanks. What was your name again? Natasha? Or do you prefer Miss. Romanoff?"

"Natasha is fine." She replied.

Lennon saluted the people in the room, then made her way up the stairs. "Thanks for your help!"

Once she was gone, Thor glanced over at Natasha. "Her hair is white."

Clint chuckled. "And she called you God."

Lennon seemed to walking around forever. There were so many floors and her ribs were killing her, as well as her ankle, which she was sure was sprained. As she walked up another flight, she decided that it was time to take the elevator, despite how afraid of them she was. She left the stairwell and searched for one, but with no luck. She swore unintelligibly under her breath. "How the hell do you find anything in this fucking tower?" She muttered.

"Perhaps I can help, Miss." Came a voice.

Lennon jumped and spun around, searching for the source. When there wasn't one, she put a hand on the switchblade that was in her jacket pocket.

"I'm sorry for startling you, Miss, my name is JARVIS. I'm Mr. Stark's computer. I run the tower."

The girl almost sunk to her knees with relief. She was still on edge from the day she had. "Sorry, JARVIS." She breathed. "I've had a long day."

"Not at all. There's an elevator down the hallway to your right. The lab is all the way up, but you can't miss it." The AI said.

Lennon smiled in thanks. "You are a wonderful computer. We all need one of you." She gushed.

"Thank you Miss. If you need any more assistance, please ask."

"Of course, JARVIS." She replied as she got into the elevator. She closed her eyes and tried to pretend she wasn't there.

"So, how does that Harley ride?" Tony was asking the doctor.

Bruce didn't look up from his work. "It's... Fast? I don't know, I'm not one for motorcycles."

Tony took a drink of his scotch, completely envious of the doctor. "Do you think she'll ever let me ride it?"

"I don't know, you should ask her."

"Sir," The AI interrupted. "There's a Miss. Burke here to see you."

Bruce's head snapped up, his eyes flaring. Tony shrugged. "I don't know a Miss. Burke, must be for you."

Dr. Banner jumped up from his chair and ran toward the door of the lab, throwing it open, bumping into someone and knocking them to the ground. He looked down, his heart skipping a beat. "Lennon?" He gasped.

The young woman, who was now on the ground and grumbling about the amount of heart attacks this tower was giving her, locked eyes with the doctor and smiled. "Hey there, Bruce."

"Are you alright?" The doctor urged, pulling her to her feet. His eyes were full of concern as he looked at the cuts and bruises covering her face. "You're soaking wet."

She pushed her hair out of her face. "I got pushed into a fountain."

"A fountain?"

She shrugged. "Yeah, but it's no big deal. There was a guy causing trouble and I tried to make him stop, so he pushed me in a fountain. I took him down with me though, so it was no big deal. I've had worse things happen."

Bruce passed a hand over his tired face. "Are you alright, though?"

"Is it your girl, Banner?" Came a teasing voice.

Bruce's face turned red, and he looked down as Lennon raised an eyebrow. "Who's asking?" She called back.

Tony walked up behind Bruce and slapped him on the back. "See, I told you she'd come back, big guy." He held a hand out to the girl. "Tony Stark. You must be the girl I've been hearing all about. He doesn't stop talking about you."

"Tony..." Bruce growled, his face bright red.

Lennon, completely unphased by Tony's stupid jokes, shook his hand. "I know who you are, Mr. Iron Man. Thought you were a goner for a little bit today." She commented.

Tony shrugged. "Eh, you know. Keeping you on your toes."

"Where's the famous Pepper Potts?"

"Pepper won't be back until tomorrow. So it's just us." He replied. "Of course, you two can share a floor, I think that'll be enough room, what do you think, Banner?" He asked the blushing man.

Bruce glared at him then turned his attention to Lennon. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up. Goodbye, Tony." He placed his hand on the small of her back, leading her into the lab.

"Be good, kids!" Tony shouted after them. Bruce glared daggers at him once again, then shut the door.


	4. Chapter 4: Fixer Upper

"Ow, careful, please." Lennon hissed as Bruce tried to clean out the gash on her collarbone.

Bruce sighed. "Lennon, it has to be cleaned out."

"Yeah, but it hurts."

"Maybe if you hold still..." He mumbled.

Lennon grunted in pain as the doctor placed the warm rag over the cut. Her face looked better than it had, although she still looked sick. Her face was still incredibly pale, and her body seemed so frail. The doctor did his best to not press too hard, for fear that her would hurt her. As he brushed over a bruise on her arm, she cried out, sending the doctor back a step.

"Excuse me?" Came Natasha's voice from the doorway.

Bruce turned around and gave the master assassin a half smile. "Hello." He said.

The redhead nodded at him. "Lennon, I brought you a change of clothes. I thought they'd be more comfortable than your wet stuff."

Lennon carefully got off the table and took the cloths from her. "Thank you so much Natasha. I owe you one, girl."

"Not at all. It's no problem. Just leave the wet cloths in the bathroom. They'll be cleaned and dried tomorrow." She smiled politely at the white haired woman, then left.

Lennon grinned at the doctor. "Give me a moment. I'll be back."

"Take your time." He replied as she flitted out of the room.

Bruce leaned against the counter and took his glasses off. Tony was never going to let him live it down that he brought a girl home. Why did it matter to him? Before he and Pepper got together, Tony had girls over all the time, sometimes more than one! The man was so aggravating. The only he had so much publicity was because he made his living off of pissing people off. Bruce sighed heavily, pulling a hand through his hair. He hoped that Lennon didn't actually believe what Tony had said. Besides, Tony was the one bringing her up constantly. Sure, Bruce had been thinking about her, but not in _that _way. That would be highly disrespectful toward her! Even the Other Guy didn't like him saying that stuff.

Damn. Maybe he really did have a soft spot for the girl...

The sound of the door closing broke him of his concentration, and he turned to greet the girl, but he immediately sucked in a sharp breath. She had changed out of the leather jeans she was wearing when they met, and was now in a pair of black leggings and a heather grey tank top. She looked a lot warmer than she did earlier. Her hair which was now dry, was falling gracefully in her face and brushed over her shoulder. Then, on the right, since it was shaved, her shoulder was exposed, and there was a half sleeve tattoo of a tiger's head surrounded by a dark blue sky, a bright moon, and a vast canopy of leaves. The tattoo was beautiful. Bruce had never seen anything like it. He marveled at how good the young girl looked. She very skinny, almost too skinny for Bruce's liking, but she had a great figure. Her legs were those of a ballerina, and her milky pale complexion was the most beautiful in the dim lighting. Although the make up on her eyes had been removed, her eyes seemed to pop against her pale face. He still couldn't get over the green of her eyes. _Whoa there, big guy._ Bruce thought.

Lennon grinned. "Hiya."

He smiled nervously at the woman. "Hi.

She grabbed at her rip cage and winced. "Hey, do you think you could look at something for me?" She asked, her voice pained. "You're a doctor, so I guess you know more about this kind of stuff than I would."

Dr. Banner cleared his throat. "Of course." He replied, holding his hand out to help her onto the table. She was moving slowly, and the doctor realized that she was limping. "What's wrong with your ankle?" He asked nervously.

Lennon groaned in pain as she got on the table. "I don't know. Feels sprained, but you're the doctor."

Bruce sighed as he reached down to take a look at her torso. "What is it that's bothering you? Are you bleeding?" He asked.

She shook her head. "No. It's this." Lennon pulled her tank top up half way, only to reveal a huge deep gash on the right side of her rib cage. The gash was surrounded by an ink colored bruise which covered her torso.

Bruce cringed at the sight of it. "What happened, Lennon?" He gasped.

"I got it when I fell into the fountain." She explained.

Bruce lightly traced his fingers over the bruise. "Are your ribs alright?" He demanded, trying not to sound too harsh. "They don't look broken or anything."

She nodded. "Nothing broken or dislocated, it just hurts."

The doctor took a wash cloth and wrapped it in some of the ice from Tony's scotch collection. He rarely drank anything on the rocks, but when he did, he always had a stash of ice nearby. He let the cloth become cold, then he took it in his hand and held the thin fabric of the tank top out of the way. He gave Lennon an apologetic look. "This is going to hurt a bit."

The young woman nodded and bit down on her lip. "Go on." Bruce gently pressed the cold cloth to her bruise. Lennon caught her breath in pain. "Fuck!" She hissed.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Bruce murmured, lightening his pressure on the wound.

She waved him off. "It's alright." She answered a little breathlessly. "I have tattoos, you'd think I'd be okay, but Jesus, this shit hurts."

As the doctor mended her, she started to relax her body, which made it easier for him to help. The two sat in silence for moment as Bruce's mind flickered back to the events of the day. A question was burning in his mind, a question he didn't want to ask, but he wanted to know. "Lennon, may I ask you a… Possibly uncomfortable question?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Sure." She replied, although it sounded more like a question.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to, I'm just curious."

The white haired girl shrugged. "Go for it."

The doctor paused a moment as he put a gauze pad over the cut on her rib cage. That boy in the street… Who was he?" He asked carefully, not wanting to hurt her.

Lennon stiffened as he asked, her eyes quickly becoming sad as she looked away.

Bruce regretted asking. He looked down, ashamed of himself. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ask. That was mean."

She shook her head. "No, it's alright." She shifted uncomfortably on the table. "His name was Sam. He was... A really good friend of mine." She said, her voice cold.

"Boyfriend?" He asked quietly.

She scoffed as if I had insulted her. "Never. He was my best friend. He and I used to be... Uh... Well, to be blunt, we were drug addicts together." She replied. She shuddered, as if reliving a bad memory.

Bruce looked up at her in shock, his ears still ringing from what he had just heard.

Lennon smiled sadly at the dumbfounded doctor, turned her left arm around so that he could see her forearm. Her arm was covered in multiple scars from needles. "I know you've noticed it." She began to say. "I know you've noticed how my face looks sunken in, how I look like I haven't eaten in a few weeks... I'm clean now, as I have been for eight years, but I still look like shit." The woman laughed, but it was forced. Bruce was speechless. "I have an addictive personality. When I try something like that, I can't just do it once, I have to keep going. So... I always find something to get addicted too. And... I just had to choose heroin. I shot up for the first time when I was fourteen. Sam and I did it together all through high school. No one ever knew, we would just sit there in school and wait until lunch, then we'd go outside and shoot up. The end of sophomore year, Sam got a car, so we'd go shoot up in his car."

"What made you stop?" Bruce asked.

Lennon laughed. "Oh, that's a fun story. Well... Sam and I got caught." She answered, smiling as she looked back on the memory. "We had just gotten some, and we were about to shoot up in his car, when a cop rolls by. He sees what we're doing and he tries to arrest us. Sam and I sat there on the ground, both sobbing messes, knowing our lives were over. Suddenly, the cop stops what he's doing, and says 'I can't do this.'" Lennon paused, a slow smile spreading across her face. "We asked him what he meant, and he said 'I can't do this to you. Either of you. I've seen some horrible things in my twenty five years as a cop, and nothing breaks my heart more than seeing you two, still babies, feeling the need to use. I don't know what you go through at home, I don't know why you feel like you need to use, but I'm not going to ruin your lives.' So, you know what he did?" She asked, glancing at Bruce.

He shook his head. "What did he do?"

She chuckled. "He wrote us each a fifty dollar ticket for disturbing the peace. We had music blaring in the car."

The pair laughed, as Bruce continued to help with the bruise. "How long ago was that?"

"I've been clean for eight years. That day was my eighteenth birthday. Sam and I both got clean after that. We quit together. Sam was always the kind of guy to be there at four in the morning if you're still awake, whether or not he had work at eight. We made a pact that if we weren't married to different people by the time we were thirty, we'd get married. We made than pact the day I turned twenty one. His birthday is the day before mine." Her voice trailed off as a tear fell down her cheek.

Bruce felt the urge to comfort the girl. He wanted to help her, but he had no idea how. "I'm so sorry, for your loss." The words felt wrong. You can't replace someone like that. Saying 'I'm sorry' doesn't do a damn thing.

And yet, Lennon Burke only smiled at him and looked down. "Thanks, Bruce."


	5. Chapter 5: Big Green Monster

"Lennon, are you afraid of needles?" Bruce asked.

She scoffed. "Does it look like I am?" She replied, gesturing to her tattoos.

He chuckled. "No, I suppose not."

"I'm just teasing, dear. Why do you ask?"

The doctor got to his feet and pulled the blood soaked gauze off of the wound on her chest. "Because this," He said, trying to be gentle with it. "Needs stitches. At least seven of them."

Lennon groaned. "Oh, wonderful. Well, it would allow me to enjoy the pleasure of your company a little while longer." She said quietly, a light, rosy tint flooding her face. "I've quite enjoyed this."

Bruce turned bright red. "So have I." Although he was blushing, he was happy to hear that Lennon enjoyed his company as much as he enjoyed hers. She was a strange girl, but he really did like her company quite a bit. She was nice to him. She was younger than him by a few years, quite a few actually, but he really didn't care. It had been a while since he was close with someone that wasn't virtually dying on his work bench. Especially a woman. For the longest time, he was married to his work, wanting to be as far away from emotional contact with another person as he could possibly be.

The doctor pulled the needle and surgical thread out of his kit, and made his way to the girl. Her eyes got wide, but she quickly put on a brave face. "I'm going to be gentle." He told her.

She smiled timidly. "Do your worst, Dr. Banner."

As he began to stitch her up, she was silent. Her fist was clinched, and her knuckles were white. Bruce tried his best to be gentle, but he was sticking a needle through her skin. By the time a second prick came around, she flinched. Bruce pulled away. "I'm sorry, are you alright?"

"Yeah." She said through clinched teeth. "I've always been nervous and jumpy when it came to skin knitting."

He raised an eyebrow. "Skin knitting."

Lennon laughed. "Don't tell me you've never heard people refer to stitches as 'skin knitting'."

"Not once."

"Well don't I feel sheepish."

The two sat in a comfortable silence as Bruce continued to sew up the wound. Eventually, the silence became too much to bear for Lennon, and she decided it was time to make conversation. She hated silence. It always made her restless. "So!" She exclaimed, startling him slightly. "The sweet doctor Banner doubles as a big green monster. How in the hell did that happen?"

Bruce looked up, trying to make it seem like he wasn't uncomfortable. "That's a long story." He muttered.

"I've got time."

"I'm almost done with your stitches."

"I'll make time." He read the girl's face, looking for a sign of doubt, but found nothing.

The doctor cleared his throat. "Well, you know Captain Rogers, right?"

She nodded. "Steve? Yeah."

"Well, back in the 1940s, they turned him into a super soldier. Just a few years ago, they tried to recreate the process, but instead, I was exposed to mass amounts of gamma radiation. It should have killed me, but instead it turned me into... Well..."

"A big green monster?"

Bruce sighed. "Yeah. A big green monster."

Lennon looked down at him apologetically. "I'm sorry, Bruce, I didn't mean to..."

He shook his head. "It's alright. There's nothing I can do about it."

"There's nothing you can do?"

He looked away, his eyes haunted. "I tried." He paused for a moment, letting out a heavy breath. "Back in Calcutta, I tried to stop everything. I thought there was no point. I got too low for my own good." Lennon's eyes widened as she realized what he was saying. "I put a gun in my mouth, but... The Other Guy wasn't about to let it happen. I survived, so... I tried to just stick to helping people. It was my only shot."

"Bruce..." Lennon whispered, staring at him with concerned eyes.

Bruce smiled sadly at the young woman. "It's alright. I'm not like that anymore. According to Stark, the Other Guy saved my life in a way. I never thought about it like that, but I don't agree."

"I don't know much about science, I'm not really a science geek," She smiled teasingly at the doctor, trying to get him to smile. "But as far as I know, mass amounts of gamma radiation is _kind of _not good for you."

"Not really, no."

"Well, I don't care what you think," Lennon started to say, smiling sweetly at the doctor. "I'm glad you're alive. I like you quite a bit. Even if you are a giant green monstrous thing, I still like you." Her voice was quiet, but every word was honest. Lennon wholeheartedly liked the doctor. Maybe a little bit more than she should, but she did. She really did like him. He may have another guy in his head, but that didn't make him any less of a person. He was a human being, just like Steve, just like Tony or Sam, or anybody. He seemed to need someone to tell him that. He didn't deserve to be by himself. He was a person, and if there was one thing Lennon knew how to cure, it was loneliness.

Bruce's jaw dropped, unsure of what to say. No one had ever been that nice to him. Even the other Avengers, when they first met him, they treated him as if he was a threat. Although he technically was a threat, Lennon didn't seem to care. She had been him change, and she had never appeared afraid of him. Not once. He could have killed her back in Manhattan. He easily could have killed her. He almost lost control when she wanted to stay, but yet she still came back. Bruce didn't understand her, but he didn't complain.

The doctor laughed breathlessly to himself. "You act as though you've been around monsters before."

She shrugged. "Maybe I have."

Her answer struck him as odd, but he didn't push it. He cleared his throat. "I'm done." He said, finishing up the final stitch.

"Fantastic. I need a shower."

"Unfortunately, you can't get those wet for at lest twenty four hours." Bruce replied apologetically.

Lennon scoffed. "Figures. Well, I'm still going to clean up before I leave."

"And where do you plan on going?" Tony demanded from the doorway, a huge grin on his face.

His sudden appearance made Lennon jump. "Jesus, we need to put a fucking bell on you."

"That would sure make sex interesting."

"Tony!" Bruce complained.

Lennon laughed. "Are you always this sassy, Tony?" She once again seemed unphased by his innuendos.

Tony shrugged. "If I wasn't, people wouldn't adore me." He replied. "Now, what's all this talk about you leaving?"

The girl shrugged. "I didn't think I was welcome to stay."

The billionaire hopped up on the counter top. "I wouldn't dream of sending you out in this weather."

Lennon looked toward the window, then back at the billionaire with a confused face. "There's not a cloud in the sky." Her response sounded more like a question.

"Yeah, well, you're staying here tonight. You don't get a choice."

She raised an eyebrow. "And what if I want to go home?"

"Do you?"

Lennon was silent. Instead, she just smiled, and looked over at Bruce, who was glowering at Tony. "I guess you're stuck with me for a night, doctor."

"Oh, he's just _devastated."_ Tony joked, putting a hand over his arc reactor as if he were wounded. He smiled at the alternative woman. "We've already set up a room for you. Ask JARVIS if you need anything." He said.

Without warning, Lennon took the glass of scotch from the billionaire's hands and downed it. The two men stared at her in shock. She shrugged as she handed the now empty glass back to Tony. "Helps with the pain." She said, grinning.

Tony looked down at his empty glass. "You stole my drink." He pouted.

Lennon smirked. "Oh I bet you're just _devastated_." She replied dramatically.

The billionaire grinned. "Oh, I like you. Bruce picked a winner."

Bruce tried not to blush. "Let the lady go to bed, Tony."

Lennon pulled her fingers through her long white hair. "I probably should go get some sleep. Thanks for patching me up, Bruce." She murmured to the doctor.

He smiled happily at the young woman. "Anytime. That's what I'm here for."

Lennon returned the smile. "Goodnight, Tony. Thank you for letting me stay."

"I can be a nice person too."

Lennon scooped up her leather jacket from the chair and turned toward Bruce. "Goodnight, Dr. Banner." She said quietly.

"Goodnight, Miss. Burke." He murmured as she smiled and skipped out of the room.

When the door closed, Tony whistled, slapping Bruce on the shoulder. "Nice catch, Banner. Nice catch." He said, walking toward the counter where he kept his scotch.

Bruce whipped around to face him. "Tony, I hope you realize that your are blowing this completely out of proportion. I was just patching her up." He explained rather defensively. He was flustered by the billionaire's attempt to make him admit to being interested in the young woman.

Tony snorted. "Yeah, and Pepper and I are just friends. I saw the way you looked at her and how concerned you were before she turned up. Now you cannot sit there and tell me that you're not remotely interested in that girl."

Bruce nearly swallowed his tongue. "I literally just met her today." He whispered.

"Doesn't mean you can't be interested in her." He said. "That's how attraction works."

"Tony, I don't know a things about her." He replied, although it was a lie. He did know some things about her, the two had had a bit of a deep conversation for a first meeting, but he liked it. He liked not having to indulge in meaningless small talk and actually have someone to talk to about whatever it was that came to mind.

Tony took a sip of his scotch. "Well, we can fix that."

"How?" Bruce asked suspiciously.

The billionaire smirked. "JARVIS, can you run a background check on Lennon Burke?" He called.

"Right away, sir." JARVIS replied.

The Other Guy growled in Bruce's head. "That's wrong, Stark!" The doctor snarled. "You can't just look into a person's life like that."

"Oh really? Are you sure you don't want to figure out what kind of monsters she's dealt with?"

Bruce took a step back. "Were you eavesdropping?" He demanded.

"For once, I actually was just passing by. I was curious too, so I searched her. What came up was rather interesting. Don't you want to know?"

As wrong as he thought it was, Tony had a point. He swallowed down his fear. "Go on then."

Hi guys, here's another update for you, I hope you like it! The next one is going to be a bit strange, just a warning.

Also, I know I haven't asked before, but I want to know what you guys think, I'm honestly really curious, and I feel bad for asking, but I would love it if you guys would review it and tell me what you think. Bad or good, I can take it, I promise. I'd love to see what you guys have to say! You guys are great, and to everyone that's read this so far, thank you for reading. ^^


	6. Chapter 6: The Burke Files

**Name:** Astrid Lillian Burke. (Name changed to Lennon Burke in August 2004)

**Gender:** Female

**Born:** October 6th, 1986

**Birth Place:** St. Alexander Hospital and Medical Center in Rochester, New York.

**Parents:** Lillian Nicole Armstrong and Damien Louis Burke

**Height:** 5'3

**Weight:** 104 lbs.

**Hair Color:** White

**Eye Color:** Green

**Ethnicity:** White/Caucasian

**Identifiable Marks:**Tiger/Jungle tattoo sleeve on right arm, needle marks on left forearm, large scar down the right of her spine.

**Current Information:** Born with a rare blood disease that was damaging her organs and making her system weak, Burke was given an injection that was mistakenly sent from a medical testing facility in New Zealand. The injection turned Burke's originally Chesnutt brown hair white, although it healed her. Because of the doctor's mistake, Burke's parents were warned about possible side effects such as hallucinations, future issues with strong emotions such as anger, and problems with memory.

By age six, Burke's parents forced her into a mental health facility for allegedly "talking to the walls". Although no psychological problems were found with the child, Burke's parents refused to let her be discharged. In 1995, nine year old Burke made accusations against Dr. Eli Cameron, who was caring for Burke, to a social worker for physical and sexual abuse. When an investigation confirmed the alleged abuse case, Dr. Cameron's employment was terminated.

By age thirteen, Burke was released to her father, Damien Burke. Her mother left the home shortly after Burke was released. Her whereabouts are unknown. Police were called many times to the Burke residence for loud parties and disturbances. While no signs of physical abuse or neglect were present in the household, an officer described Burke as a "very desensitized little girl", often found sitting in her room playing music, seemingly oblivious to the situation while police were breaking up fights. Burke's father, convinced that she was mentally incompetent, sent her to many psychiatrists over the years, all of them finding no serious psychological problems besides clinical depression and an addictive personality.

At fourteen, Burke became addicted to heroin with best friend (possible boyfriend), Sam Miller. She spent most of her time after schools at parties or drug houses with Miller, although she remained in school and got good grades. Her average was a B-. Burke attempted suicide in January 2002 at the age of 16, taking over forty of her anti-depressant pills. Sam Miller found her and called an ambulance, saving Burke's life. After becoming clean in 2004, Burke changed her name to Lennon Burke and got a job at a bar, where she was a waitress and regular musical act with best friend Sam Miller. Burke and Miller's musical group Queen Marie's Execution was rated one of the top local groups for many years, opening for some of the big name acts that came to New York.

After a domestic disturbance at Burke's home in 2006 which left Burke with a long burn scar from a hot fire poker, a broken nose, and bruises around the throat from being choked, her father was arrested and Burke moved out of the house. Three years later in 2009, her father was evicted and Burke allowed him to stay with her.

In 2010, Burke got a job as a mechanic, quitting her job as a waitress, but continued to play at bars with Sam Miller.

No additional information has been collected.


	7. Chapter 7: Infatuation

Bruce Banner stared at the computer screen, utterly frozen with disbelief at what he had just read. His mind was swimming, and the Other Guy was getting restless. His hands gripped the countertop so tightly that his knuckles were pure white.

"Now do you understand why I wanted her to stay here?" Tony said quietly.

The doctor took his glasses off and placed them down on the counter, holding his face in his hands.

Tony noticed a green tint to the doctor's skin, and he pulled him away from the counter. "Calm down, big guy. It's okay. She's safe here. She's just down the hall a little bit."

"How could parents do that to their child?" Bruce rasped, trying to keep himself in control. After living with an abusive parent of his own, he always got upset when he heard another story about someone being abused. It always sent a terrible feeling through his gut, and of course, the Other Guy didn't like it too much either. He couldn't Hulk out here. Not with the Avengers so close. Not with Lennon so close. He couldn't.

He heard Tony pouring a drink and he looked up at the billionaire. "Drink. You'll feel better." Tony handed one of the glasses of scotch to him, which Bruce gladly accepted. He took small sips, but downed the glass in seconds. Tony refilled it willingly.

"How long is she allowed to stay here?" Bruce asked the billionaire, staring down at his glass.

"As long as she wants."

Bruce's head snapped up. "You're serious?"

Tony shrugged. "I already said you were, and I'm not about to let your girlfriend go back home. Plus, Pepper would have a fit." He replied.

Bruce attempted to suppress the deep scarlet blush that flooded his cheeks. "She's not my girlfriend, Tony."

"Yet." He muttered just loud enough for Bruce to hear.

The doctor groaned. "Tony, even if I was... Interested in the girl, she's twenty six."

"So? She's legal."

"She's much too young for me!" He exclaimed.

Tony rolled his eyes. "That's all you're worried about? The fact that she's younger than you?" He asked, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"I'm old enough to be her father!"

"Bullshit, you would have been like… ten!"

"Tony, even so, I could never..."

"Because of the Other Guy?"

Bruce paused, then bit his lip, looking down at the ground. He took a sip of his drink, not wanting to look up at his friend.

Tony understood. Bruce was worried about hurting Lennon. If he lost his temper with Lennon too close, he could kill her. It was why he avoided close friendships. He could hurt someone. On more than one occasion. Tony wondered if he should send Pepper away for the same reason. If something happened to her because of him, he'd never forgive himself. The only reason he didn't make her leave was because he loved her. He loved her too much to send her away. It was selfish, but Pepper was the only one that kept him from losing his mind sometimes. Tony understood his friend's dilemma.

The billionaire sighed, putting his glass down. He put a hand on the doctor's shoulder. The man looked up at him with sad eyes, obviously unaffected by Tony's feeble attempts to give him an encouraging smile. "There's nothing wrong with not wanting to be alone. Besides," He looked around, making sure no one would overhear him. He leaned closer to Bruce's face and lowered his voice. "I think she digs you, Banner."

Bruce laughed quietly, drinking more from his glass.

Three hours and many glasses of Tony's expensive scotch later, the two men were laughing like toddlers in the lab. The other Avengers made their way upstairs to tell Tony that they were going to bed, only to find the men playing Monopoly on the floor.

"Baltic Avenue, Stark, pay up!" Banner slurred.

"You fuck." The billionaire groaned, throwing the money at the doctor.

The other Avengers looked quizzingly at one another, then back at the men on the floor. Clint cleared his throat, trying to get their attention.

The men looked up at him, both of them obviously gone. "What?" Tony asked innocently.

"Did... Did you get him _drunk?"_ Steve demanded.

Tony smirked. "Maybe." He stammered before the two men burst into laughter, snorting and snickering away until their sides hurt.

"And you did not think to invite us?" Thor asked, looking sad that he didn't get to partake in the drinking.

"You guys can play if you want!" Tony replied.

Bruce giggled drunkenly. "The only rule is Tony can't be banker, because he cheats."

"I do not!" He protested.

"You pulled three five hundred dollar bills out of nowhere!"

"I told you, they were under my other bills!"

"You lying sack of shit." The doctor laughed.

Natasha, though amused by the situation, shook her head. "You all should go to bed. Pepper just got home, Stark, I think she's waiting for you in your room."

Tony immediately got up. "Night Banner. Night guys!" He called as he left the room.

Banner looked back at the Avengers with a drunken grin. "I win."

The others laughed.

"Come on, Dr. Banner. Time for bed." Steve said, pulling him to his feet. "You know where your room is, right?"

The doctor nodded, then stumbled off toward his room. "Goodnight!" He said to them as he passed them.

"I can't believe Stark got him drunk." Natasha was saying.

"Stark can get anybody drunk." Clint replied.

Before heading to his own room, Bruce quietly walked to Lennon's room. He wanted to check on her. He opened the door quietly, peaking inside to make sure she was asleep.

Lying peacefully under the blankets, Lennon was sleeping blissfully, the soft sound of her breathing being the only noise in the room. Her face was peaceful. She stirred in her sleep, making the doctor smiled. She looked so young in her sleep. So innocent. So sweet. Her almost luminescent purity intrigued the doctor, and he felt the urge to lie down beside her. He couldn't tell if it was because of the alcohol or he was just that crazy, but he wanted to.

Lennon muttered something unintelligible in her sleep, making Bruce chuckle quietly as she curled deeper into the expensive bedsheets. He didn't want to wake her. With one last glance at the woman, he silently left her room and stumbled across the hall to his own.

Once in bed, he stared up at the ceiling, thinking about Lennon. _She really is beautiful..._ He thought before drifting off to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8: Rough Around The Edges

As the morning sun beat through the windows of Dr. Bruce Banner's room, the man groaned, fighting off the morning's hangover. He sat up, rubbing his temples. _God_. He thought. _I'm never drinking that much again. Drinking with Tony is out of the question. _

He slowly pulled himself out of bed, and put on the first set of cloths he grabbed out of his bag. He quickly glanced at himself in the mirror and groaned. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so shitty.

Bruce slowly made his way down the hallway toward the smell of food in the kitchen. He heard people laughing, and what sounded like bacon sizzling the closer he got. When he made it to the kitchen, all of the Avengers were sitting around the giant table, while Lennon, still dressed in shorts and a tank top, was flitting around the room, filling glasses of orange juice for everyone. Tony and Pepper were sitting at the end of the table, Tony making his usual jokes and Pepper just letting him do what he wanted, occasionally sending him a look that read 'are you serious?'. Steve was sitting beside Tony, making jokes with the billionaire and Clint, who had his arm around the back of Natasha's chair. Thor was gulping down orange juice like it was the best thing he'd ever tasted.

"Morning, Bruce!" Lennon said cheerfully, handing him a cup of coffee.

The Avengers all turned to him and grinned. "Hey big guy!" Tony shouted. "How's the hangover?"

Bruce groaned and sat down in the chair beside the thunder God. "Don't remind me." He grumbled. "I'm never drinking with you again, Tony."

The billionaire only laughed.

"Here." Lennon said, holding her hand out to the doctor. "These will help with the hangover."

Bruce took the painkillers from the girl and swallowed them with a sip of coffee. "Thanks, Lennon."

"Not a problem!" She replied, going back to check on the food.

A few minutes later, Lennon came back with food, serving everyone before sitting down next to Bruce with a plate of her own. She smiled nervously. "I hope you like it." She said.

"Banner, your girlfriend cooks!" Tony said through bites of egg. "At least she knows how to work a kitchen. _Ow!" _He muttered as Pepper kicked him under the table.

"This is pretty good, Lennon." Clint said, taking a bite of his bacon.

Lennon looked embarrassed. "Thanks. I pretty much raise myself, so learning how to cook was a bit of a necessity." She replied.

Bruce smiled at her. "It's wonderful, Lennon." The food was fantastic. As one who couldn't cook to save his life, Bruce always appreciated the cooking of others.

She blushed, but quickly covered it up.

"Lady Burke!" Thor bellowed, making everyone jump. "This is excellent!"

Lennon looked up at him with a startled expression. "Uh... Thanks, Thor. But, it's just Lennon, man. No need for such an elegant title."

The thunder God dipped his head. "But only a lady rides such a magnificent silver stead." It took Lennon a moment to realize he was talking about her motorcycle.

"So, Lennon, how long are you going to grace us with your presence?" Steve asked casually.

The young woman looked up at the Captain, then shrugged. "I mean... That's up to Tony and Pepper, really. I can go home whenever you want." She answered quickly, glancing at the billionaire.

"Are you kidding?" Tony looked as if she had insulted him. "You stay as long as you want! Pepper and I are going to be here for a few weeks to fix up the tower, then we're heading back to California." He explained.

"You are welcome to stay with us." Pepper repeated, smiling at the young woman. "Besides, I could use another girl in the house. I need a shopping partner."

Lennon smirked. "As long as I don't end up the bag carrier, I don't care!"

Pepper turned to Tony and hit him in the chest. "Looks like you don't have to go shopping with me anymore."

Clint laughed. "Now he and Bruce can do manly things while the women are out."

"More like geeky things." Lennon snickered.

Bruce glared playfully at her. "And to think I thought you were nice."

"Only at the center. I'm like candy." She rely lied with a wink.

About an hour later, the remaining four Avengers said their goodbyes, promising to come back and visit soon. "Don't be a stranger, Lennon. Feel free to call if you need any help." Natasha said.

Lennon nodded. "Of course, Natasha." She held her arms out for a hug, which the assassin returned, although it was awkward. 

Thor pressed a kiss to her knuckles, which sent a curious spark of jealousy through the doctor. "Thank you for everything, Miss. Lennon."

Lennon grinned. "My pleasure, sir."

Steve saluted the woman in respect. "Ma'am."

She returned the salute. "Captain." The two tried to keep a straight face, but all else failed when they both began to laugh. They hugged each other, while Lennon told him to try not to work himself to death. "I saw those bruises, you take care of yourself." She reminded him.

Steve smiled. "I'll keep that in mind, ma'am."

Clint wrapped his arms around the young woman. "Feel free to hit Tony whenever you few necessary." He whispered.

"I will. You have to teach me how to use that bow, I could use that."

The archer laughed, promising her he would.

After the Avengers left, Tony and Pepper disappeared upstairs to work on the tower, leaving Lennon and Bruce in the kitchen to clean up. Lennon insisted that she did the cleaning, but Bruce helped anyway. "Just because you're a woman doesn't mean you have to clean the kitchen by yourself." He told her.

Lennon raised an eyebrow. "Are you a feminist, Dr. Banner?" She asked jokingly.

He chuckled. "No, I'm a realist."

She flicked water at him, making him laugh, then returned with flinging soap at her. Bruce started to tell her stories about Calcutta, how he dodged police and helped the village people illegally. Lennon only laughed. "You're starting to sound like me."

"What, do you help people illegally?"

"No, I just do illegal things."

"Naughty." Bruce chided gently, his eyes laughing.

A few minutes after the two had cleaned everything up, the two settled in the living room to watch a movie. Bruce let the girl pick it, and to his surprise, she chose an old _Film Noir_ classic, _Double Indemnity._She claimed to love it, blushing and apologizing for having such a lame choice in movies.

Bruce looked up at her in surprise. "Not at all! At least you're not one for sappy chick flicks." He said.

Lennon rolled her eyes. "I may be a little rough around the edges, but I'm not _that_ soft."

About halfway through the movie and a bowl of popcorn later, there was a soft buzzing from the floor where Lennon's phone had fell. Bruce picked it up, only briefly at the name. Lennon looked over at the doctor. "Who is it?" She asked.

"It's your dad." He said, handing it to her.

Lennon took it apprehensively, then sighed. "I'll be back." She said apologetically.

Bruce gave her a concerned look, but nodded. "Take your time." He said as the woman quickly got up and ran toward the next room.

Bruce tried to pay attention to the movie, but the lengthened absence of the girl started to make him uncomfortable. Considering what he knew about her father, he started to worry. He got to his feet cautiously, and made his way down the hall as quietly as his feet would allow, as if she would hear him approaching. But as soon as he hear the sound of glass shattering, he began running, the Other Guy pounding in his head. "Lennon!" He shouted as loudly as he could. He pounded on the door as he heard screaming and loud banging, as if she were being attacked. "Lennon, open the door! JARVIS!"

"Shall I get Mr. Stark, sir?" The AI asked a little too calmly for Bruce's taste.

"Yes, call him! Call him now! Lennon, open the door!" He could feel his trembling body turning green as the Other Guy began to take over his mind. The doctor threw his body at the door, making it fly open and hit the opposite wall. "Lennon!"

The girl was sitting hunched over in a ball on the floor, surrounded by glass, her hand swollen and covered in blood. She was covering her head like you would in a tornado, breathing heavily like some kind of caged animal. Her entire frame was shaking terribly.

"Lennon..." Bruce uttered, the Other Guy going back into submission as he took in the woman on the floor. He was frightened by what he saw.

The woman's head snapped up immediately, the day's black make up now leaving black streaks down her red face. Her eyes were so murderous, making the doctor step back. Not even the Other Guy was that furious. "Lennon." He said again, quieter than before. He could tell that she was having an anxiety attack, and his doctor instincts took over. He took a step toward her, holding his hands up in a way to show her he was unarmed.

Without warning, Lennon took a half shattered lamp from the floor, hurling it straight at Bruce. The doctor ducked out of the way just in time, staring at her in shock. _"Go away!"_ She screamed loud enough to curdle blood. "Get out!" She picked up a shard of glass and threw it, missing Bruce Banner by half an inch. In any other situation, he would have Hulked out, but he was too horrified.

Bruce held up his hands in defense. "Lennon, I'm here to help." He said calmly.

"I don't need your fucking help, get _out!"_ Her voice cracked as if her vocal chords had been ripped to shreds from the volume of her voice. She glared at the doctor, tears streaming down her face as her trembling fingers wrapped around yet another shard of glass. Bruce saw the threat and backed out of the room, shutting it tightly as the shard smashed and embedded itself into the wooden door.

"Bruce!" Tony called, his voice full of concern. He caught up to the man, his dark eyes wide. "What the hell happened?" He demanded.

The doctor turned and looked at his friend with tired eyes. "Don't go in there." He muttered, his voice scratchy, as if he had been the one screaming.

Tony glanced at the door. "Why? What's wrong with Lennon?"

Bruce turned and started to walk away. "I don't know." He whispered. "I tried I talk to her, but she started throwing things..."

Tony put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from walking away. "Are you alright?" He asked gently. It took Bruce a minute to realize that Tony wasn't talking about the glass. 

The doctor sighed and rubbed his temples with his thumb and forefinger. "Yeah." He rasped. "I'm uh... Going up to the lab. I'll see you later, Tony." With that, Bruce gave his friend a smile, then turned and walked slowly toward the elevator. He tried to block out the sound of Lennon crying from her room, but it followed him like a mistake all the way to the top floor.


	9. Chapter 9: Salt of the Earth

Hours later, Lennon opened her door quietly, looking around, hoping no one would see her. She spotted Tony on the couch a few feet away, and she sighed. The billionaire looked up from his papers, taking in the sight of the girl. He smiled. "Hiya, Lennon."

She gave him a half smile in return. "Hi." She rasped. Tony noticed how she looked away or down at her feet, deliberately avoiding contact with him. Even her stance was jittery, as if having him there made her uncomfortable.

Tony said nothing, but took a sip of scotch, and cleared his throat. "Are you okay?" He asked casually.

"Where's Bruce?" Lennon's voice shook.

Although she had ignored his question, he didn't push it. After what had just happened, he wasn't going to make her talk. "He's upstairs in the lab. You can go see him if you want. I think he's waiting for you." He replied.

Lennon opened her mouth to speak, then looked back toward the room, her eyes apologetic and shameful.

Tony held up a hand before she could say anything. "Don't worry about the glass, Len. It'll be taken care of. Just go see Bruce." The billionaire smiled at the woman encouragingly.

The woman said nothing, but nodded curtly at the billionaire before slowly stumbling toward the stairs.

Tony looked after her and sighed. Although he knew not of what happened, he still felt bad.

Bruce Banner was working quietly in his lab, going through files and tinkering with equations as a doodler would. His mind wasn't into it. He was still thinking about Lennon. He wondered about what her father had said or done to her to make her upset like that. He had never seen such a rage.

"Hi, Bruce." Came Lennon's soft voice from the doorway.

Startled, Bruce jumped and banged his knee on the counter. He swore under his breath and turned around to face her.

She looked different. She had changed out of the shorts and tank top she had been wearing into her cloths from the previous night, which were now cleaned. The hand that had been bleeding was now bandaged up with gauze, though swollen. Her face had been washed, and she didn't have makeup on anymore. Seeing her face, Bruce could see just how much she covered up. She was colorless, except for her lips. Her eyes seemed to be drained. She wasn't the same girl that Bruce had enjoyed the company of few hours ago during the movie, nor the same girl from breakfast. She had lost all of the energy that she had been full of, and was utterly lifeless. The doctor didn't know what to say. He wanted the old girl back.

Lennon smiled at him gently, as if she were afraid. "Don't worry. I'm not going throw anything at you." She said, her voice humorless.

Bruce blinked. "I didn't think you would."

The girl stepped cautiously into the lab, looking around at everything in the room. "Do you mind if I'm here? I don't want to disturb you." She replied, eyeing the paperwork on the desk.

He shook his head. "Not at all. Come sit down." He said.

Lennon walked over to the stool apprehensively, and stared awkwardly at the floor. "I want to apologize for earlier. I didn't mean to freak out like I did. It's very rare that I get blackout angry anymore, but when I do, it gets pretty ugly. It was wrong and I'm sorry."

"Hey, listen, it's okay. Trust me. I've seen worse. I've _done_ worse." The doctor joked, nudging her with his elbow.

Lennon's dead eyes lit up a bit. She hadn't expected him to forgive her so easily. After all, she had thrown a lamp at him. He could have Hulked out and killed everyone and it would have been her fault. Or, she could have hurt him. She could have hurt him badly. Yet, he forgave her. Lennon knew that he wasn't the monster that everyone treated him as. She didn't know much about him, but he was a sweet guy. Older than her, sure, but that meant nothing. He didn't treat her like she was less than because of the drugs or anything else, and she didn't think of him in any less way. _You gotta stop treating yourself like you're worthless, Len._ Sam's drunken slurring voice ran through her head. He had come over the night she found out her boyfriend had been cheating on her the whole time and she told him she was wasn't worth anything. _You're not worthless, honey. You're wonderful. You make bad choices in men, but that's just because you don't think you're worth loving. You are. You just need to find the right guy to tell you that._

Her eyes watered, and she looked away so that Bruce wouldn't see. She wasn't healed, but being around Bruce Banner made her feel... Okay. She didn't feel like a worthless piece of shit. She didn't feel like she had to sleep with every guy that bought her a drink or smiled at her or anything. For once in a long while she felt human. She didn't feel like she was just another zombie in the world. She felt like she actually mattered to someone. She mattered to Bruce. Before she knew it, a tear rolled down her face and she quickly hid it so he wouldn't see. Instead, she smiled at him, putting all her heart in it. "Thanks, Bruce."

He returned the smile. "No need to thank me. It's the right thing to do." He paused for a moment, debating whether or not to ask her about it, but he did want to help in any way he could. "So... May I ask what happened, or is that a subject I should stay away from?"

Lennon was silent for a moment, and looked straight ahead, her eyes focused on nothing in particular. "My dad kicked me out." She told him emotionlessly.

Bruce froze. "He kicked you out?" He repeated in a disbelieving tone.

She nodded. "He decided that I didn't deserve to come home anymore since I think it's okay to just skip out on him and not call. I told him 'I'm twenty six, dad, why do you care?', and he said that he's not having a junkie in the same house. I told him that I wasn't a junkie, and I was just helping some friends out." She paused, and her eyes flashed angrily. "He told me I was lucky that he didn't put me away. He told me I was so fucked up and he didn't want me home anymore. He said he'd call the cops if I came home. The fucking asshole kicked me out of my own fucking house." Her words dripped poison. "I hate him. I hate him so fucking much, man."

"Can't you go home anyway?"

She shook her head. "Yeah, but then what? Have him send me back to the hospital?"

"Hospital?" Bruce said carefully. Although he already knew, he couldn't let her know. He wanted to hear her tell him. Hopefully she trusted him enough.

Lennon sighed heavily. "I don't really tell many people this, but I spent seven years in a psychiatric hospital." She said quietly. "My parents forced me to go."

"Why?"

"That's a long story."

"I've got time." He said, repeating what she had said to him.

Lennon looked up at him with a questioning look, then scoffed. It wasn't meant to be rude, she just couldn't believe she was telling him this. "When I was born... I was very sick. The doctors said they were getting a new drug that was used to help blood diseases like the one I had, but the testing facility in New Zealand accidentally sent them the wrong damn drug. It was one they were testing. It sure as hell cured me, but it fucked me up royally. It made my hair white." She said, running her hands through her hair. "The doctors thought I was done for, but New Zealand said that it would probably give me schizophrenia or some shit, although I knew for a fact, that's not how mental illness works, trust me, I've studied psychology, so I really don't think any of those halfwits knew what they were talking about, the fucking idiots." She sighed. "But, when I had imaginary friends as a child, because they kept me locked inside the house and I was so lonely that I didn't know what else to do, they thought I was nuts, so they kept me away. The psychiatrists kept saying 'there's nothing wrong with her, there's nothing wrong with her', but they just kept insisting there was, so I was there for seven fucking years. Finally, they sent me home. My mother left after that. She couldn't bear the sight of me..." Lennon's voice trailed off sadly, and she looked away.

Bruce's heart dropped to his stomach. Although he knew about the hospital and her mother leaving and the experimental drug, he felt terrible. He knew her father was a horrible person, but the fact that they could do something like that to an innocent child made him sick. "Lennon, I'm... I'm so sorry."

She shrugged. "Hey, what's the use of crying over spilt milk?"

Her comment struck him hard. "That's not spilt milk. That's child abuse."

Lennon scoffed. "Even so, there's nothing I can do about now. He kicked me out, I might as well just take whatever money I can and go find somewhere else to live."

"You can stay here." Bruce said immediately. "Tony wouldn't throw you out. Nor would I let him."

Lennon laughed. "I'll have to take that up with him. That's very sweet Bruce, but I doubt Stark likes me that much, darling. I did just trash his guest room, after all."

"Well, then I'll just put the fear of God in him." He joked.

With that, Lennon rolled her eyes and gave Bruce a kiss on the cheek, making him blush slightly. She pulled away, and the two locked eyes for a moment. Bruce felt his heart skip and he leaned in slowly, the world around him slowing to a stop...

Just as their lips almost connected, Lennon suddenly stopped, and pulled away. Bruce looked away and cleared his throat out of embarrassment. He knew he was blushing. He almost kissed her. He couldn't believe it. "Sorry." He said, his voice scratchy.

Lennon smiled apologetically. "Don't worry about it." She paused, looking around at the lab. "So," She started, glancing at his paperwork. "What are you working on?"

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "You really want to hear about my geeky science stuff."

She nodded. "Yes, I'd love to hear about your geeky science stuff."

With that, Bruce began explaining the works of astrophysics and everything he was working on. Although half the time, Lennon had no clue what he was talking about, she still listened intently. She thought it was adorable how excited he got about science. He was like a kid in a candy shop. The two spent the day in the lab, Lennon working as Bruce's assistant. They were the happiest they had been in a long, long time.

"Tony, what the hell are you doing?" Pepper demanded as she came into the room.

The billionaire was sitting in a chair in the lab bellow where Bruce and Lennon were, his feet up on a table, sipping casually at his glass of scotch, watching the pair on a TV screen. "I'm just checking on the kids, honey." He replied.

Pepper slapped his arm. "Tony, that's so rude! They deserve their privacy."

"Has he kissed her yet?" Clint shouted as he came in. He sat down beside Tony and looked up at the screen. "Hey, Pepper."

Pepper glared at the men. "I can't believe you two! Turn that off!" She said, reaching for the remote.

Tony grabbed it before she could get to it. "I was checking on her. I wanted to make sure she was okay. By the way, she's coming home with us. She and Banner both are."

"What? When was this decided?" Pepper demanded, although she didn't actually mind. She liked Lennon, and thought maybe Bruce would keep her a bit more grounded.

"The second Lennon's father kicked her out. Believe me, Bruce needs a study buddy." He replied. "And no, Clint, he hasn't. He hasn't even tried." He looked up at Pepper. "He almost did a few hours ago, but he hasn't since."

The redhead sighed and sat down on the other side of Tony. "Why do you care if he kisses her?"

"Because they're adorable and perfect for each other. What else do you need?" He asked confidently.

Pepper just shook her head. There was no use in arguing with a stubborn billionaire.


	10. Chapter 10: Evil Masterplan

Lennon had been living with Tony, Pepper and Bruce for almost nine months. The three went home to California, where Lennon got her own room down the hall from Bruce's-which she was sure that Tony did on purpose-and worked most days helping Bruce in the lab and playing music. She spent some nights teaching Tony how to play guitar, and jamming out in the kitchen while she cooked. Pepper loved having another girl around the house, and the two often went shopping together or having drinks on the couch in the living room after dinner while they watched movies and talked about whatever came to mind.

But, what mattered most to Tony, was that Bruce was happy.

The man would wake up and walk around the house like he were part of a musical, and almost dance around the lab. Tony would catch him some nights at dinner, staring at the young woman with a rosy blush to his cheeks. He was laughing a lot more. He was smiling. He was as happy as a man in love in the summer time could be.

Tony's next mission was to get them together.

Lennon was in the kitchen cooking dinner. An old rock song she had covered with Sam years before was blaring through the speakers while she skipped around, adding spices and seasoning to the food she was cooking when Tony found her. He watched her from the doorway for a moment, shaking his head. It was easy to see why Bruce was crazy about the girl.

"Very nice performance, Miss Burke." He finally called from the doorway, clapping his hands.

Lennon squeaked and dropped her spoon. "Jesus! You scared the hell out of me." She said, turning around. She didn't seem embarrassed about being caught in her kitchen performance, however, despite the scare.

Tony smelled the air. "Smells amazing."

"Thanks. Pepper found the recipe online, and asked me to make it."

The billionaire grinned. "Well, it smells fantastic. Cajun?"

Lennon smiled. "Gumbo. I was craving some homestyle Louisiana cooking earlier, so when Pepper brought me the recipe, I jumped at the chance." She said, proudly.

"Can't wait." Tony turned to pour himself a glass of scotch. He could feel her eyes on him, like she knew he wanted to talk to her. He decided there was no point in delaying anymore. "So," He started to say. "I've been meaning to ask you about something."

She shrugged. "Okay, what's up?"

Tony grinned teasingly. "How's it going with Bruce?"

Lennon blinked innocently, but he fought back a smirk as he saw the blush that crept up her cheekbones. "I don't know what you mean."

Tony chuckled. "Oh, come on now, everyone knows. You guys make it so obvious. The way you stare at each other when the other isn't looking," Lennon's face got super red. "The way you two blush whenever anyone brings it up..."

"Shut up!" She whined.

The billionaire laughed. "Gotcha."

Lennon glared at him, her face still bright red. "Alright, you caught me, you dick." She snapped, making Tony smirk. "So what if I like the guy? He's… He's nice." Her voice trailed off as she looked at the ground.

"He's a little more than nice. He's also funny, sweet, an absolute genius..."

"I swear to God, I will hit you with my spoon."

"Alright, alright, I'm just trying to prove a point. You should tell him."

"Tony, you're fucking crazy. Besides, even if I do..." She said, her voice trailing off quietly. "I doubt that the man would have any interest in someone like me."

Tony nearly dropped his drink. "Are you kidding me? The man's crazy about you!"

She snorted.

"He does! Trust me, I've been around him for months, the man's love drunk."

Lennon giggled. "Alright, well, what do you suggest, then, Mr. Stark?" She asked.

"I have a great plan." Tony said as an evil grin spread across his face. "Tomorrow night, I'm taking Pepper out. We're going out for dinner, then, we're going to a musical she's been dying to see, and we're going to be out for most of the night. I thought, maybe, you and Bruce could have a date night." He said happily.

Lennon was still looking at him as if he had lost his mind. "And, how do you suggest I do this? Some of the best places require reservations weeks in advance." She explained.

"Yes, but you're a _fabulous_ cook, Miss. Burke." Tony replied. "I'll ask him what he likes, saying you want to know what to make for dinner tomorrow night. Then, tomorrow night when Pepper and I go out and he's all busy being nerdy in the lab, you take a few of the fancy bottles of wine out of the collection, whatever you prefer, get it all ready, change into something pretty, and tell him dinner's ready, and when he comes upstairs, he'll be surprised with a wonderful date night by the fire. It'll be perfect and romantic and maybe we'll be able to break the sexual tension up a bit."

Lennon's jaw dropped to the floor. She was obviously in shock, but, Tony could see the gears turning in her head. Eventually, she sighed. "Okay, maybe this'll work, but I don't really have anything to wear, Tony."

"Covered. Pepper is going shopping tomorrow morning to find something pretty to wear for tomorrow night as well. She's planning on dragging you along anyway." Tony said excitedly. _I am an evil genius, and I don't care what anybody says. _

Lennon hesitated, but eventually smirked. "Alright, Stark. You win."  
_

Hello everyone! God, I'm so sorry it's taken so long, I've been so busy and I have very, VERY limited access to the internet, which is really unfortunate, and I'm really sorry. I wish I could update more.

Either way, he's a few updates for you, so I hope you guys forgive the wait, and I love you all!


	11. Chapter 11: Suitor

_...that contains the genes for cholera toxin. Infectious CTXφ particles are produced when V. cholerae infects humans. Phage particles are secreted from bacterial cells without lysis. When CTXφ infects V. cholerae cells, it integrates into specific sites on either chromosome. These sites often contain tandem arrays of integrated CTXφ prophage. In addition to the ctxA and ctxB genes encoding cholera toxin, CTXφ contains eight genes involved in phage reproduction, packaging, secretion, integration, and regulation. The CTXφ genome... _Bruce's eyes were beginning to hurt. He had been reading about infectious diseases for the past two hours. Although he had taken a liking to being a doctor of medicine, he couldn't handle that much toxin and bacteria talk all at once. The doctor took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, leaning back in his chair. He was alone in the lab, which was very rare, mainly because Tony never left him alone, but, the billionaire and his lovely redheaded personal assistant/girlfriend had gone out on a date and weren't planning on being back until late, so, he figured he'd get some reading done.

Bruce sat for a moment, debating whether or not to go upstairs to see what Lennon was doing. Dinner would have to be ready soon, and he was getting pretty hungry-which he thought was funny because he spent an hour reading about illnesses caused by food-but, he wanted food all the same.

Then, as if on cue, just as he was getting up, an audio call from the kitchen came up on the screen. He smiled and pressed the button. "Hello?" He said with overdramatic emphasis, knowing it would make her laugh.

"Dinner's ready, doll!" Lennon's chipper voice replied with a giggle.

"I'll be right up!" He said as he stood up and closed his book.

On his way upstairs, Bruce's mouth was watering with the amazing smell coming from the kitchen. He made his way into the oversized room, but there was no sign of Lennon. He looked around, but couldn't find her. "Lennon?" He called.

"In the living room, Bruce!" Came her soft voice.

Bruce made his way to the gigantic living room, but stopped in his tracks when he stepped through the doorway. His heart jumped up to his throat.

Sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed and holding a glass of Tony's expensive wine, was a very well-dressed Lennon Burke. Her long, almost luminescent white hair was waved and curled and falling gently over her shoulders. Her grungy band tee and skinny jeans had been traded in for a black, full sleeved lace dress that went down mid-thigh, and hugged her body beautifully. On her feet were a pair of cherry red heals that were easily six inches tall. Her makeup was dark like always, but her eyes were so well done up, that it looked professional. Even her lips matched the color of her heals. Bruce was speechless. Lennon looked... stunning. His jaw dropped.

She smiled nervously at the doctor. "Hey, Bruce." She purred.

The doctor tried to swallow the lump that rose in his throat. "Uh... Hi, Lennon." He cleared his throat and looked around the room. The lights were dimmed, and the fire was roaring on the wall facing her, the dancing flames giving her face an almost glowing appearance. There was music playing in the background, something sweet and jazzy from one of the collections they collected. On the table was the open wine bottle (which Bruce knew costed over six hundred dollars _at least),_ and a glass half filled. There were two plates on the table, both with a dish that he recognized as a simple, but amazing Greek dish that he had fallen in love with. "What's all this for?" He asked timidly.

Lennon shrugged, her face slowly becoming pink. "I just thought... Since Tony and Pepper went out on a date night... We could have dinner together." She replied, her voice shaking a little.

He looked down at his casual attire. "I'm a bit underdressed for a date."

Lennon giggled. "I think you look nice. You always do."

The doctor chuckled and sat down next to the girl, picking up the glass of wine. "Does Tony know that you went through his wine collection?" He teased her.

Lennon nodded. "He said I could take a few bottles for the night."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so you two planned date night, huh? I should have figured when Tony asked me what my favorite dish was."

She laughed, the sound ringing through the room like golden bells. "No, actually, it was Tony and Pepper. They set it up. I almost didn't do it." She admitted.

"Why not?"

The young woman's face turned bright red, which Bruce adored, and she looked down, embarrassed. "Because I'm partial to you, but I was going on their faith that you felt the same."

Bruce's heart jumped and he looked down at the ground. He didn't know what to say. On the outside, he looked calm, but on the inside, he was screaming. Lennon _did_ have the same feelings he felt about her. He heart was going erratic. He was speechless.

Lennon cleared her throat. "Anyway," She said, picking up the plates of food and holding one out to Bruce. "I hope you like it. I've never actually made Greek before. I did my best to make it taste at least relatively good." She said.

The first bite was heavenly. The flavor nearly knocked Bruce off his feet. "It's wonderful, Lennon." He exclaimed in between bites.

The white haired girl grinned proudly. "Thanks, Bruce."

The couple spent another hour on the couch, eating the delicious meal Lennon had made and drinking the whole bottle of Tony's expensive wine while they talked and talked and talked. They were getting a bit tipsy already, but that only made it better.

"So, Sam actually fell off the stage?" Bruce asked, laughing through his drunken haze at the story the young woman had been telling him.

Lennon, who had almost immediately burst out laughing, nodded her head. "He was unconscious before he hit the table."

"Oh my God."

The two were laughing so hard that there were tears streaming down their faces and they were unable to breathe.

Finally, once they had calmed down, Bruce and Lennon placed their heads down on the back of the couch, each looking into the other's eyes, not saying a word to each other, just looking. Bruce reached out and took ahold of Lennon's hands, holding it tightly between his own. "Your hands are so tiny." He commented, his thumb tracing imaginary circles on the back of her knuckles.

Lennon smiled. "Normal for European woman. Their hands were tiny yet strong for working. Although I'm only European on my mother's side and she's never worked a day in her life." She snorted and took another sip of her wine.

He laughed. "So, I have a question."

"Hm?"

"Why did you never tell me that you..."

"That I fancied you?"

He blushed. "Yeah."

Lennon bit her lip and looked down at her nearly empty glass. When she turned her gaze back to Bruce, she almost looked apologetic. "Because, you struck me more as the 'married to my work' type, and I'm not really all that smart, so we couldn't have one of those steamy office romances like in all the pornos." She replied.

The two laughed while Lennon refilled the wine glasses, emptying the wine bottle. As they continued to swim in each other's gaze, Bruce brought her hand up to his lips, and pressed a kiss to her knuckles, making her blush.

"What was that for?" She asked once he pulled away, her voice soft.

The doctor shrugged slightly. "I saw Thor do it, and I wondered if it would have the same effect if I did it." He replied quietly.

Lennon turned pink and then slowly leaned in toward the doctor, her eyes locked with his. Bruce's heart pounded in his chest as he began to get closer to her. He reached his hand up and curled his fingers around the side of her neck, using his thumb to stroke her cheek. She smelled so intoxicating; expensive wine and the golden honey smell that was from her shampoo. Bruce wanted to do nothing more than just hold her there forever.

But, his mind was at war.

He had been trying so hard to suppress the emotions he had for the beautiful woman in front of him for so long, but he could no longer ignore them. Bruce was in love. But, that made it worse. He _couldn't_ fall in love with her. _She's too young for you, you moron. She has her whole life and so many options, she should never have to settle for an old, broken man like yourself! What if you hurt her? What if the Other Guy hurt her? She'd never forgive you!_

He tried to pull back, but, just as he did, Lennon's fingers brushed against his chest as they curled round the collar of his shirt, and he felt himself smile. 

_Fuck it. _

Bruce crushed his lips to hers, setting off fireworks in his mind as he pulled her closer. Kissing her was like everything he could ever imagine. In that moment, _for just that moment,_ there was no Other Guy. There was no S.H.I.E.L.D. There was no one trying to harm him or destroy him. There was no Tony, no Pepper, no Thor, no Loki... The world had caught its breath in the midst of the constant chaos, and for just a moment, everything was tranquil. The storm had passed, the sky was cleared, he didn't care about anyone or anything... Bruce Banner was in love, and not one person could ruin it. Not even Bruce himself.

The two slipped quietly off the couch, stumbling through the halls toward Bruce's bedroom. Lennon's dainty fingers glided over the buttons on his dark button down shirt before throwing it to the floor. Her shoes came off, kicked over to the corner. The bedroom door slammed behind them as they collapsed onto the bed, their bodies pressed together with no force able to separate them. Lennon nipped and kissed at his neck, sending the animalistic side of Bruce into a frenzy. He gripped the fabric of the dress so hard he was surprised it didn't rip, and he tried to pull it up over her head…

But suddenly, Lennon pushed him away. "Wait, no, stop, stop. I can't do this." She whispered, sitting upright on the bed.

Bruce, who was coming out of a daze, propped himself up on his elbows, staring at the woman in confusion. "What's wrong?" He gasped, trying to catch his breath. Suddenly, a million thoughts began racing through his head, and he began to panic. Had he gone too far? Had he hurt her? Did she think he was taking advantage of her? "Lennon, what's wrong?" He asked. "What did I do?"

The woman shook her head._ "You_ didn't do anything, Bruce." She whispered.

"Then what's wrong?"

Lennon looked down at the ground. "My life is just fucked up."

Her answer struck a chord, and Bruce sat up and moved so he was sitting beside her. "What do you mean?"

Lennon seemed to gaze off into space before shaking her head. "I never believed it was customary to tell anyone anything, especially anything like this, but... I don't know, with you, I feel like I have to be honest, and to be perfectly truthful, I haven't been." She paused and waited for Bruce to speak, but when he said nothing, she continued. "You know that I've been with people before. Many people. My last actual long term relationship was probably when I was thirteen and it lasted two months. Of course, those relationships matter when you're in eighth grade." She joked, making Bruce smile. "But... After that, I just… Went crazy. I mean, I played in bars, and a lot of those bars let their bands drink for free, not caring if they're minors or not. If a guy bought me a drink, normally, I'd sleep with him. It was just how things were.

"When I was sixteen, I met a guy who I ended up catching feelings for, though the reason is unbeknownst to me. I did what I could to keep him, bought him drugs, slept over when he told me to, all of those unpleasant things that I regret now that I'm older." She took a deep breath. "Then, I found out that he had a girlfriend in Baltimore, and they were expecting a baby. When I found out, I threatened to tell her, and he lost his mind. He kicked me out onto the streets, told my dad what had been happening, although everything he had said was extremely exaggerated and not factual, tried to turn Sam against me… And he got away with it. But, that was almost too much for me." Her voice trailed off, and she shook her head in disappointment.

That's when something he had read in her file clicked in his head, and he felt his heart drop to his stomach. "Is that when you took all those pills?" He asked quietly.

Lennon immediately went rigid where she sat, her jaw locking and her normally calm emerald green eyes were flashing with anger. She turned her head to Bruce, her expression hard, and unforgiving. "How did you know that?" She demanded.

_Shit._ His blood turned to ice in his veins. "I..." He tried.

"I never told you that, how did you know about that?" She shouted again, getting off of the bed and standing over the doctor, although she was only a few inches taller, though it had no impact on her level of intimidation. "How did you know?"

Bruce knew he couldn't say anything. He wanted to lie, but he knew he was stuck. "Tony was worried about you, and he pulled up the file on you. I knew I shouldn't have read it, and I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He stammered, trying to defend himself.

Lennon laughed sarcastically. "Oh, fantastic! What else did you find out, hm? Find out any more juicy details about me?"

"Lennon, I'm sorry!" He shot back, though it was weak. "I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't have, I tried to stop him, but-"

"So you decide to read it?" She retorted, her voice getting louder every moment. "That's fucking bullshit, Bruce, and you know it!" She turned on her heal and stomped out of the room, gathering up her things as she did.

Bruce got up and ran after her. "Lennon, I didn't do it out of malice, Tony wanted a valid reason to let you stay! You know him, he always does background checks!" He kicked himself mentally for how ridiculous he sounded. He knew he wasn't making sense.

She snorted. "Yeah, well, now you know the wonderful parts of my _exotic history._ Does it make you feel better to know how fucked up I was? Was what I told you not enough? Or did you just not trust me?" She hissed, tears filling her eyes.

"Of course I did! Don't you understand?" He growled, the Other Guy already bubbling to the surface of his mind as his anger rose. "Tony wanted you to stay here and he brought up your file so that he could show me why! He felt bad for you and neither one of us wanted you to go home to your abusive father who puts you in psychiatric hospitals with even more fucked up doctors! But, then again, you're the one who let him come live with you in the first place, so, maybe I had a reason to be concerned!" He shot back, the Other Guy roaring in his head.

But the moment he said it, he regretted it.

Tears began pouring down Lennon's face and he knew he had made a huge mistake. "Lennon..." He gasped. "Lennon, I'm sorry... I didn't mean to..."

The girl turned her back to him. "I made the choices I did for a reason. You can't stay angry forever. You of all people should understand that." She whispered through her tears before running out the door, leaving Bruce completely alone.

The doctor watched her as she walked away, the ache in his chest feeling like he had just been punched, but he said nothing. He had done enough.


	12. Chapter 12: Gone

"I swear, Pepper, they burned my steak." Tony was saying as he and Pepper walked up the path to the house.

"Well, maybe if you were a _little_ nicer to the wait staff, they wouldn't burn your food." She replied, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, I was perfectly nice, I just... Hey there, Lennon!" He called to the girl as she came almost running out of the front door. He was about to call to her again, but, then, he saw her face, he realized something was wrong. Very wrong. He immediately ran to her side. "Hey, hey, hey, what's wrong? What happened?" He demanded, startled when he saw that she was crying. "What's wrong? Where's Bruce?" He signaled to Pepper to go inside then gripped Lennon's arms tightly, making her look at him. "Lennon, what happened?"

She pushed him away with a gentle shove, then walked past him toward her motorcycle, which was parked by the large garage. "Thanks for letting me stay." She said bitterly as she kicked the bike to life, not even bothering with a helmet.

Tony stood there in shock, a million scenarios through his head as he tried to piece together what had just happened.

"Tony!" He heard Pepper scream for him from the house.

His heart jumped and he immediately ran inside, finding Pepper kneeling on the floor in front of the sofa where Bruce was sitting, his head against the back cushion, staring up at the ceiling with red-rimmed eyes.

Pepper gave her boyfriend a heartfelt look, and got to her feet to stand in front of him. "Something bad happened with Lennon, he won't tell me, but look at his hands." She whispered anxiously to him.

Tony looked over, his stomach dropping as he noticed the all-too-familiar green tint that was fading, but quite present on his knuckles. He nodded, not once taking his eyes off of Bruce. "Alright, go down to the lab, and don't come out until I say so. I've got him."

With a reluctant sigh, Pepper walked away, leaving the two men alone.

Tony joined the doctor on the sofa, looking him up and down with caution. "Bruce, talk to me, what happened with Lennon?"

Bruce didn't look over at him, but, a tear began to roll down his cheek, and he hung his head. "I fucked up, Tony. I really fucked up." He told him, his voice grave.

"How did you fuck up?"

"I mentioned her suicide attempt back in 2002, which she didn't know I knew about and when she realized I read through her file, she got angry and left. I yelled at her and said horrible things, and now she's gone hell knows where, and it's my fault."

Tony's heart dropped to his stomach. "Bruce... Listen, you know Lennon. She won't leave forever, she'll come back, I promise. Hey, look at me, big guy." He said, making the doctor turn to him. "You know that she'll come back. Where the hell is she going to go? She won't go back to her father's house. She'll go somewhere for the night, maybe two, and then she'll be back. I promise you." He told his friend encouragingly, although he wasn't 100% sure himself.

Bruce shook his head. "She can't trust me, Tony, not after what I did. Why would she come back?" He whispered.

"Well, she's a woman, Bruce. When they get mad, sometimes it's best to let them be. She'll be back by morning." A few second later, Tony held a glass of scotch out to him, which he greatly accepted.

**oOoOo**

_You stupid girl._ Lennon thought angrily to herself as she stalked through the pouring rain. _How could you do that to him? _

The girl had ditched her motorcycle in a parking garage a few blocks back, and was now walking through the city. She had decided that she just needed to relax and cool off before going back home. She was angrier at herself for the way she treated Bruce. She couldn't hate the man for reading her file, although it angered her. It was rude, but she was more upset about the thing he said. Everything she tried so hard to forget he brought up and threw in her face. But... At the same time, she was still in love with the good doctor. There was no changing that. _Fighting is healthy. _A voice whispered in her mind.

Lennon made her way down to the pier and leaned up against the railing of the dock. The night had been ruined. Her dress was soaked, her hair was sopping wet, her makeup was smeared from the crying... _I look like a goddamn mess._ She thought bitterly. She would definitely have to change before she went back. Or, at least, she would have to change before she saw Bruce.

Once the rain finally subsided, and she decided to watch the boats on the water. She knew she had to go back. She had to apologize to Bruce, even if he didn't want to hear an apology. He probably wouldn't want to be with her, but she had to try.

Lennon soon became aware of another person's presence on the dock, and she wrapped her arms around her chest, hoping it wasn't one of the Avengers coming to retrieve her. She didn't want to see anybody yet.

"Out here alone?" Came the voice. It was a male voice, very scratchy and low pitched.

Lennon swore under her breath, annoyed that she had been seen. "Yeah."

The man, whoever he was, walked up beside her, the only light around him was the faint orange glow of the cigarette in his right hand. His hood was up, preventing Lennon from seeing his face. He was easily over six feet tall, which intimidated Lennon, but she tried to ignore it. "Do you mind if I smoke?" He asked politely.

Lennon shook her head. "Be my guest."

"Do you smoke?" He held out a cigarette to her.

"Yes, I do." She lied. Lennon had actually quit smoking a few years ago. But, considering the circumstances, she figured one couldn't hurt. Bruce wouldn't be happy, but at the moment, she didn't care. She took it and the man lit it for her. The smoke filled her lungs as she took a hit, and she smiled. She had forgotten how much calming cigarettes were sometimes. It helped with the hole in her chest. She thought it tasted a bit off, but it was a menthol after all.

"So," The man said. "What are you doing out here all by yourself?"

Lennon sighed, looking out over the water. "Thinking."

He nodded. "Ah. I see. Aren't you afraid?"

She looked up at him with an eyebrow raised. "No, why would I be?" She asked, almost insulted.

"Oh, you know how some people are. Young, pretty girl by herself late at night... Some people might try to take advantage of that." He replied, his voice a bit sketchy.

Lennon immediately felt uncomfortable. "Uh... Yeah, well I'm a black belt, so I'm defended." She said, beginning to feel ill. Her head started swimming, her hands were starting to shake. She quickly tried to hide them, as she didn't want him to see. "I should probably get back home. My… _boyfriend_ is probably worried about me." She pushed away from the railing, and started to stumble away from him, the entire world spinning around her.

"Oh, really? Leaving so soon? I thought we were talking." The man said, walking after her.

"No, I need to go home." Lennon began to panic as she felt her body began to shut down. Her vision began blacking in and out, making it hard to see where she was going. _Just get to the road, just get to the road…_

She felt the man's hand take hold of her arm. "Come on now, honey, don't be rude." He growled in her ear.

"No!" She gasped, ripping away from him and falling to the ground with a hard thud. She knew she would have bruises the next day, but that didn't matter at the moment. "Stop this…What... What did you... What did you do to me?" She gasped as she tried to crawl away from him.

The man stood over her and chucked. "You should never accept cigarettes from strangers, kitten."

_Kitten? No, no it couldn't be!_ She thought through the haze. "Please... Leave me alone..." Suddenly, he felt a searing pain on the back of her head as a glass bottle collided with her skull, and she collapsed, fighting desperately to catch her breath. She gazed up at the man with spotty, blurred vision. "Please..."

He laughed and slid his arms under her. "Sleep, kitten. It'll be over soon." He muttered evilly.

_"Bruce…" _She tried to whisper, though it came out as a choked whisper. Then, suddenly, the world went dark.


End file.
